Congregation Beth Shalom of the Santa Clarita Valley is delighted to welcome new clergy to guide its member families as spiritual leaders. Rabbi Ira Rosenfeld and Cantor Beth Wasserman Rosenfeld join CBS on July 1. This will be the married couple’s first opportunity to be working together for the same congregation.
Rabbi Rosenfeld is an accomplished rabbi and religious school teacher. Currently completing his Master’s thesis at The Academy for Jewish Religion/California, he is the former rabbi and cantor at Temple Ner Shalom in San Luis Obispo. He has taught students at virtually all levels, from first grade to adult education, including 8th and 9th grade at Los Angeles Hebrew High School, and 7th grade at Temple Aliyah in Woodland Hills.
Rabbi Ira uses his humor and mastery of dialect to engage and educate both his students and congregation. Rabbi Ira mixes his command of Hebrew, Aramaic, and a little Ladino within his worship services to create a warm and interesting interactive experience for his congregants.
Rabbi Ira Rosenfeld and his wife, Cantor Beth Wasserman Rosenfeld
He has a love of Jewish and secular music, enhanced by his musicianship as a drummer and guitarist. His many talents also include comedy and acting, and he has extensive experience performing in comedy clubs and for television and motion pictures.
Rabbi Ira grew up in Brooklyn, New York, and moved to Los Angeles to pursue his acting and comedy careers. Although he initially began teaching in Jewish institutions as a way to pay the bills in between professional engagements as an actor and comedian, he found that what he really wanted to do was become a rabbi and inspire people spiritually, as well as through entertainment.
Rabbi Rosenfeld and Cantor Rosenfeld have collaborated together to create many different kinds of worship experiences, from Shabbat to High Holy Days. By fusing his Orthodox upbringing with her Conservative background, they bring the best of both worlds to their congregants.
Rabbi Ira and Cantor Beth consider the production of their two sons, Jonah, 6, and Eli, 18 months, to be their most satisfying collaboration to date.
Cantor Beth Wasserman Rosenfeld comes to CBS with over 10 years experience as an accomplished cantor. In addition to her studies through the Cantors Assembly Certification Program, Cantor Beth has earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Voice Performance and a Master of Arts degree in Music Production from the American University in Washington, D.C.
In addition to her cantorial work at various Southern California congregations, Cantor Rosenfeld has performed at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, the Matrix Theatre, and UCLA’s Royce Hall at a variety of tributes and celebrations of Jewish music. Cantor Beth’s position as assistant cantor with Cantor Chayim Frenkel, the long-time cantor at Kehillat Israel, Pacific Palisades, led to co-producing four CD recordings of Jewish music. She is a featured soloist on all four CD’s. [view:node_ad=5]Cantor Rosenfeld’s work with religious school students created a “singing community” among her students during weekly prayer service as a fun way to feel spirituality. She has directed many adult and youth choirs, as well as training both adolescent and adult B’nai Mitzvah candidates in Hebrew, prayers, and trope (the special notes for chanting Torah and Haftorah).
Cantor Beth has also performed on stage in a variety of plays and musicals, and was a featured singer on two different Carnival Cruise Line ships.
“Our Rabbi and Cantor Search Committees did a tremendous job under the challenging circumstances of having to simultaneously fill both clerical positions for our congregation. We are very pleased to welcome Rabbi Ira and Cantor Beth,” said Congregation Beth Shalom’s Board of Trustees President Don Like. “We invite the community to come meet Rabbi Ira and Cantor Beth this summer, as I know they are eager to learn more about the Santa Clarita Valley and its vibrant Jewish Community,” Like added.
Congregation Beth Shalom of the Santa Clarita Valley is a Conservative Jewish congregation, serving the community since 1976. Shabbat services are held at CBS every Friday evening and Saturday morning. CBS is located at 21430 Centre Pointe Parkway, Santa Clarita, CA 91350. For directions and a worship service schedule, call the CBS office at (661)254-2411.
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